My morning at work started off fantastically with a mock-Carmel Macchiato!

I mixed 1/2 a cup of coffee, 1/4 cup hot water, and half a pack of Carmel Cocoa Mix and it was so good. I had two cups to use the whole packet!

Around 11, I had grapes.

And at noon, I had my black bean soup which I neglected to photograph because it quickly went down the hatch!

My afternoon snack pack:

I ate the string cheese and a tiny bit of trail mix (in the baggie) at 2. Then I had the Glo Bar at 4. The banana, fruit leather, and Ferrara Rocher went untouched.

Training went well this afternoon! It was a lot of information but all seems totally doable.

Grocery Challenge

I was home by 6 and Jodus and I pretty much immediately turned around and went to Costco.

Going into this shopping trip, we had already spent $123.26 of our $200 budget for the November Grocery Challenge.

I knew we were going to blow it. My list was too long. If we didn’t have a turkey to buy, we’d have been ok. But we aren’t. We didn’t go over yet. But we will on Sunday.

I know that what is deemed a necessity is negotiable but my body was craving veggies. It’s all I’ve wanted the last couple of days. And we have been significantly lacking in that department in our fridge. So we loaded up.

Spinach

Carrots

Bell Peppers

Broccoli

Grape Tomatoes

Mushrooms

Asparagus

Frozen Green Beans

Eggs

Cheese Spreads (my one splurge for this whole month, besides 2 Starbucks that I shared with Jodus)

Red Potatoes

Sweet Potatoes

Today’s total brought us up to $188.99.

I know this month isn’t over yet but I want to share my thoughts about this challenge so far.

This challenge made me less inclined to buy fresh produce. Less inclined to buy organic. Less inclined to have variety in my diet. It made my meal planning more challenging.

This challenge made me think twice about impulse purchases such as Starbucks or getting lunch out instead of eating in or eating what I packed. This challenge made me look at the cost of what I was throwing in my cart more. This challenge made me appreciate the fact that I don’t have a very small/strict budget with food.

So as you can see, there were positives and negatives associated with the challenge and overall I think it was good for us. I don’t think we saved any money in the long run because we are now really low on some staples of our kitchen that will be getting restocked as soon as the month is over. But I think it was a good thing to make me take a step back and actually look at the price of food, the price of eating well, and a variety, and indulgences.